Tim BontempsNov 18, 2025, 12:01 AM ET
- Tim Bontemps is a senior NBA writer for ESPN.com who covers the league and what’s impacting it on and off the court, including trade deadline intel, expansion and his MVP Straw Polls. You can find Tim alongside Brian Windhorst and Tim MacMahon on The Hoop Collective podcast.
PHILADELPHIA — Paul George said he “felt good” after playing in his first game since March as the Philadelphia 76ers earned a 110-108 comeback victory over the LA Clippers on Monday.
George, who had surgery on his left knee in July, finished with nine points and seven rebounds in 21 minutes against his former team, playing in roughly five-minute stints at the start of all four quarters. He was on the bench for the final 8:52 of the game as the 76ers overcame a 13-point deficit to pick up the win.
“It felt great,” said George, who shot 2-for-9 from the field. “It felt great to finally play basketball again. Been like eight months since I played, so it was a long journey. A lot of ups and downs, a lot of hiccups … but felt good to finally get out there, and I felt good.
“Rusty, but I felt good.”
George played in his first game since March 4, when his season ended after he received injections in both his left adductor muscle and left knee. He played in only 41 games in his first season with the 76ers, who signed him to a four-year, $212 million max contract in July 2024.
Last season, George averaged 16.4 points per game, his lowest since his third year in the league, as Philadelphia’s championship aspirations quickly fizzled.
His second season with the 76ers was then delayed several weeks after his offseason knee surgery. But after an extended ramp-up period in practice, George was cleared to return Monday, and was expected to play about 20 minutes in his season debut.
He didn’t waste much time making an impact. George hit a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer on the right wing less than a minute into the game off an assist from Tyrese Maxey, who finished with a game-high 39 points. George was fouled on a 3-point attempt on the next possession, making two of the three free throws.
“It felt great, man,” George said with a smile about making his first shot from the floor. “I watched it and there were so many emotions inside. There was zero emotions outside … honestly. I was just trying to focus on just the game, staying locked in and engaged, but it felt great to make the first shot.”
It was mostly downhill from there. George eventually hit a short runner in the lane over Clippers center Ivica Zubac for his only other field goal of the night.
The rust was understandable, though. George said a potential minutes increase would be determined by his work with the team’s medical staff and seeing how his body responds.
With George on the bench down the stretch, the 76ers tried to seal their comeback victory. After trailing by as many as 10 points in the fourth, the 76ers took a 110-106 lead with 1:08 left in the game. But Maxey committed two turnovers in the final 20 seconds, leaving the door open for the Clippers.
Former 76er James Harden, who finished with 28 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists, missed two 3-point attempts to allow Philadelphia to escape with the win.
“I thought I got fouled,” Harden said of his first 3-point attempt during the frantic finish. “But then I had another opportunity, too.
“They went into a box and one, [76ers coach Nick Nurse] kind of switched it up a little bit, so kind of threw us off and kind of took my aggressiveness away a little bit. But I thought I had a good opportunity at it.”
When crew chief Curtis Blair was asked by a pool reporter after the game why a foul wasn’t called on Harden’s first 3-point attempt, Blair said, “During live play, it was deemed that [Quentin] Grimes legally contested Harden’s 3-point shot.”
76ers star center Joel Embiid was sidelined for a fourth straight game, missing the past three because of right knee soreness. Before the game, Nurse said he thought Embiid could be nearing a return.
“[He’s] just not quite pain-free,” Nurse said. “I think it’s getting better.
“I don’t think he’s far away from playing.”
In six games this season, Embiid is averaging 19.7 points, 5.5 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 23.3 minutes.
The 76ers didn’t update the status of forward Kelly Oubre Jr., whose spot in the starting lineup was filled by George on Monday. Oubre suffered a knee injury in Friday’s loss in Detroit, and was listed as out Monday because of a left knee sprain.
Oubre, who had started every game this season before Monday, was averaging 16.8 points on 49.7% shooting.
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